The Smiling, Proud Wanderer: From the Moment He Picked Up Qu Feiyan

Chapter 159 Riding the Clouds and Chasing the Moon

Shen An flipped through a brand-new booklet, reading it intently.

He copied it from the filthy original, and after confirming that there were no mistakes, he burned it.

It includes two kung fu styles: "Stepping on Clouds and Chasing the Moon" and "Thirteen Styles of Flying Sand and Moving Stones." The former is a light-body skill, and the latter is a sword technique.

Shen An had personally experienced Tian Boguang's swordsmanship. It emphasized speed, using speed to overcome slowness and skill. The moves were ruthless and cunning, truly a first-class skill in the martial arts world.

But that's all. Even at its fastest, it can't catch up with Chief Escort Lin's sword now. To Shen An, its value is far less than that lightness skill.

Lightness skill, as the name suggests, is a technique for making one's body light.

The core principles are to boost morale, leverage external forces, and adjust one's center of gravity.

All martial arts in the world, though varied and numerous, share the same fundamental principle.

Tian Boguang's "Stepping on Clouds and Chasing the Moon" goes straight to the core from the very beginning. Its essence lies not in how to raise one's breath, but in how to use it; not in the skill of footwork, but in the frequency of exertion.

The entire manual is divided into two main principles: "Stepping on the Three-Layered Clouds Upright" and "Stepping on the Three-Layered Clouds Downward".

The former is used for long-distance pursuit and chase, with a powerful and graceful movement.

The latter specializes in maneuvering and shifting within a small area, making the most of every inch of space.

The key points are raising and utilizing qi and adjusting the center of gravity.

After reading "Stepping on Clouds and Chasing the Moon" from beginning to end, Shen An was somewhat disappointed. This technique did have its unique aspects, but it was far from the divine skill manual he had imagined.

It is far inferior to the more famous "Lingbo Weibu" and "Shenxing Baibian", which have a qualitative improvement at an instant.

But it's still far superior to the lightness skill of Mount Song.

The fact that Tian Boguang was able to cultivate to his current level and earn the great reputation of "traveling alone for thousands of miles" is mostly due to his extraordinary talent.

For Shen An, the "Reverse Three-Layer Cloud Step" which is actually used to fight enemies is not as practical as the "Forward Three-Layer Cloud Step" because his martial arts are very open and unrestrained, and he does not need to do any agility or transformation. He only needs to ensure that his speed can keep up with the enemy.

Having resolved to cultivate, then—

A clear mind remains calm and undisturbed.

Not practicing is the same as not practicing at all.

After entering a state of clarity, Shen An re-examined the technique.

In his view, the so-called "walking on snow without leaving a trace," "walking on duckweed and crossing water," and even the "walking on clouds and chasing the moon" pursued by this kung fu, are not essentially about making the body lose weight and thus ignoring the rules of physics.

If that were truly the case, then it wouldn't be martial arts, but rather the arts of immortals.

Perhaps the magic rope used by the magician in the world of Resurrection has something in common with this, but it certainly doesn't exist here.

Martial arts, in the end, are about extending and developing the limits of the human body to the greatest extent.

The description of "stepping on three layers of clouds" in the booklet sounds mysterious and fantastical, as if one were taking three steps in the air as if walking on flat ground.

But through Shen An's analysis and deconstruction, the truth gradually becomes clear.

This is by no means three isolated jumps; on the contrary, it is a very high-frequency process that breaks down a complete power exertion into three subtle gaits.

First stack: explosive burst from the ground.

This is no different from ordinary light-body skills, which involves channeling internal energy into the leg muscles and using the recoil from the ground to propel the body forward. However, its special feature is that it does not require using all strength at once, but only seven-tenths, leaving three-tenths of the strength to ensure that the core muscles are still activated and able to generate force again while the body is in the air.

Second layer: Fine-tuning and air treading in mid-air.

This is the core secret of this lightness skill. When the body is airborne and the old strength is exhausted, the practitioner will use a special breathing method, combined with the instantaneous burst of internal energy in a specific meridian, to forcibly twist the body and use the soles of the feet to "step" on the air on a very small plane.

The third layer: inertial reuse and landing cushioning.

By taking advantage of the brief moment of airtime gained from the second "layer," the practitioner uses the immense inertia of the body's forward momentum to adjust their posture, converting the potential energy of the fall into the kinetic energy of the next forward thrust.

The way it lands is also very particular. It doesn't slam down hard, but rather, like a feather, it touches the ground first with the toes or the balls of the feet, dissipating the impact through the joints, ligaments and muscles, and then completing the next "burst of force".

These three "layers" flow like clouds and water, forming a series of complete high-speed cycles.

From a distance, the cultivators appear to be literally walking on the wind, their feet treading rhythmically through the clouds and mist, never stopping. This requires not only tremendous explosive power but also unparalleled and exquisite control over the body.

Now that you understand the principles, practicing according to the methods given in the booklet will be much more effective; it's simply a matter of stepping on bricks and walking through baskets.

It involved a lot of hard work, such as running on the bow, stepping on the line, walking on sand and snow, and floating on water.

So one afternoon, Qu Feiyan sat on a small stool in the yard, propping her chin up as she watched Shen An run back and forth, filling the yard with upright bricks.

She knew Shen An was practicing his lightness skill, so she didn't disturb him, but just watched.

As the sun began to set and the sky grew darker, no one knew how she managed to remain patient.

"Knock knock knock".

Shen An's figure gently touched the last brick and landed steadily on the ground.

He exhaled a long breath, his clothes already soaked with sweat.

Upon hearing the sound, Qu Feiyan immediately jumped up from the bench and ran over to open the courtyard gate.

Standing outside the door was Feng Changrong.

As soon as he entered the courtyard, seeing the bricks scattered all over the ground and Shen An's sweaty appearance, a look of sincere admiration flashed in his eyes.

My senior brother is already so skilled in martial arts, yet he is still so diligent and hardworking, never slacking off for a single day. It is truly shameful.

"Senior brother." Feng Changrong bowed respectfully.

"Changrong, what is it?" Shen An took the towel Qu Feiyan handed him, wiped the sweat from his face, and asked.

This little girl was busy running around, she was really working hard.

Feng Changrong explained his purpose: "Brother Qi, Chief Escort Lin of Fuwei Escort Agency learned that you have returned to Bailianfang and just sent someone to deliver a visiting card. He hopes to pay a visit in person to express his gratitude and discuss some matters with you."

Lin Zhennan?

Shen An paused slightly.

He pondered for a moment. In his mind, now that Lin Zhennan had mastered the Evil-Repelling Sword Technique and greatly improved his martial arts, the safety of the Fuwei Escort Agency should be assured.

People in the martial arts world do not consider the Evil-Repelling Sword Technique to be a quick and easy martial art.

In their eyes, Lin Zhennan's sudden rise to prominence can only be attributed to his diligent practice of his family's secret techniques since childhood, which he has now finally mastered. Such examples of late bloomers are not uncommon in the martial arts world.

The Zixia Divine Skill of the Huashan Sect, the Five Divine Swords of the Hengshan Sect, and even the Heart-Shattering Palm of the Qingcheng Sect—which of these, when mastered to a high level, isn't a top-tier martial art? Who would, for no reason, fixate their gaze on him?

Right now, I don't want Lin Zhennan to re-enter the spotlight of the Songshan Sect or even the entire martial arts world because of me.

The less trouble, the better.

Especially at this critical juncture when the "washing hands of one's hands" ceremony is about to be held.

So Shen An said in a deep voice, "Please reply to Chief Escort Lin for me. Tell him that I appreciate his kindness, but I am currently too busy to attend to him. You might as well ask Chief Escort Lin if he is in a hurry. If not, I will personally visit him after Uncle Liu's conference ends to apologize."

These words were perfectly worded, expressing both apology and a polite refusal to meet.

Upon hearing this, Feng Changrong nodded and said, "Senior Brother's consideration is thorough. At this time, we should indeed prioritize Uncle Liu's grand meeting and not be distracted by other matters. Junior Brother will go and report back to Chief Escort Lin."

After saying this, he bowed again and turned to take his leave.

After Feng Changrong left, Shen An looked at the magnificent sunset on the horizon and silently made plans in his mind.

Judging by the time, it should be around tomorrow.

The main force of the sect, along with the three senior uncles, should be arriving in Hengyang City soon.

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